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Dublin, IRELAND - Trinity College Dublin has installed the country’s first BigBelly solar compacting bins on campus. The BigBelly Solar Compactor is a patented compacting waste bin that is completely self-powered.  Instead of requiring an electrical connection, BigBelly uses solar power for 100% of its energy needs.  The unit takes up as much space as the “footprint” of an ordinary street side bin – but its capacity is five times greater.

Increased capacity reduces collection trips and can cut fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions by 80%.  BigBelly also provides cost efficiencies from labour savings, fuel cost and maintenance savings, as well as environmental benefits from reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants.  The BigBelly Solar Compactors are safe, easy to use and designed to keep out pests, rodents and eliminate issues that open bins have.

“The installation of ten of these environmentally friendly bins on campus is another example of Trinity’s being leaders in waste management. Last year, the College reached its 50% recycling target, recycling half of the total waste produced on its main campus. The College now leads the way in Ireland’s third level sector in relation to recycling,” stated Mr Noel McCann, Facilities Officer at Trinity College.

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College Station, TX – Student demand helped motivate the Texas A&M administration to place five solar trash compactors on campus, using green technology to keep the A&M campus cleaner.

Unlike standard trashcans, these solar trash compactors, located around the Memorial Student Center, Rudder Tower, Sbisa, the Commons and Evans Library, use only solar energy to compact trash, enabling them to hold five times the amount of a standard container.

“The big belly units are part of a pilot program,” said Kelly Wellman, the sustainability officer for A&M. “We are using green technology to compact the trash. It compacts at a five to one ratio meaning the solar trash compactor can hold as much as five regular trashcans sitting by side.”

There is an attached unit at each location for plastic bottles.

“Most beverage containers on campus are plastic bottles and there are logistical challenges associated with plastics. We want to divert plastics out of the waste stream so we included these units,” Wellman said.

It was the staff and the student body that initiated the ideas for the plastics recycling. “Student demand is really a big motivator but so many people have helped make this happen,” she said. “It is really a team effort with many different departments. A lot of people are thinking outside the boxes and doing things they aren’t normally used to doing.”

“It is so new that we haven’t really gotten started picking it up yet,” said A&M recycling coordinator Tom Marshall whose role is picking up after the plastics have been compacted. “A lot of students and faculty requested plastics recycling and our department is about to start all over campus. Plastics are going to end up being a big thing.”

He said plastics are important because of the need to keep as much out of the landfills as possible. With the technology implemented on campus, this is now helping to do that, he said.

With students and faculty being more environmentally conscious the department is receiving a lot of positive feedback for the project.

“With the positive feedback received the departments are excited to be moving forward. In the spring, the recycling companies are expanding the plastics recycling to inside buildings. In the long run it is really about operational efficiency,” Wellman said.

Some students said they hope the project works out and will stay on campus.

“Recycling plastics on campus is a great idea. I was excited to see the staff take the initiative to start this project and I really hope that it works out and expands as much as possible,” said Brad Norwood, a junior maritime systems engineering major.

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